kscans

Chapter 884 - A Grand Feast in Full Swing

In the survival event, [Starry Paradise], who are the most crucial personnel?

By this, the third iteration, the players' consensus would be unified. It is none other than the 'Chefs' who can provide the 'food' that fuels everyone's activities.

During the first event, Nono-san had wisely expounded on various things, and to put it simply, her predictions were correct from top to bottom. The number of people focusing on cooking skills exploded, and the population of virtual world chefs apparently swelled to several times its pre-event size.

And yet, demand still outstrips supply. The scouting battles for the rare chefs, relative to the total player population, will likely continue for some time among many groups.

—And as for our situation in that regard.

"This is just insane…"

Looking up, there was only earth, so it wasn't exactly a starlit restaurant, but the lively scene with its many flickering lights in the twilight created an atmosphere that was more than enough to feel out of the ordinary.

And the words a single kitten spun, half in exasperation and half in admiration, were directed at… the great central plaza of our base. Before us was an array of banquet tables, temporarily summoned by earth mages, that could easily seat two hundred people. Spread out upon them, leaving no empty space, was the brilliance of 'luxury.'

The sheer number of different dishes was overwhelming. As for their quality, the sight of the guys to my right and left, completely engrossed in stuffing their faces, said it all.

We gained two more chefs in the second event, and another two this time around, for a total of five.

Our group, now boasting additional chefs brought in by Nono-san and Tetsu-san's pair, was, as you can see, the very picture of smooth sailing when it came to 'food.'

"Couldn't we turn this into a tourist spot…?"

Nacchan-senpai said that, but it wasn't entirely a joke.

"That's not a bad idea. This place has a pretty rich variety of [Stardust Beasts] that appear. Dragons… well, they require aerial combat, but we also have several options for mountable types like great boars, tigers, and horses. I bet there are a lot of players who'd seriously want to come here just for taming purposes."

Honestly, from a group management perspective, the idea of our 'allies' continuing to swell in number indefinitely in future events is something to consider. We'll need to change things up at some point.

First of all, I'm absolutely terrible at managing things. Even if I were to entrust it to someone else—like Oaks-shi, who's already acting as a co-leader—the burden would be immense.

So, we need to think this through properly.

"Starting from the fourth event, maybe we could recruit applicants and invite them through a lottery…?"

"Hmm… well, we're invited guests, so I'm not really involved either way."

I hadn't intended to gauge her reaction; I was just talking to the senpai next to me as part of the conversation. Since my words were met with disinterest, I turned to look at the other side.

Sitting there with a look of perfect entitlement wasn't Nia-chan—but for some reason, the orange-haired girl who had pushed her friend aside to secure the spot next to me.

As for the blue-haired girl, she was on the opposite side of the table, getting her puffed-out cheeks poked by Ri-na.

"Whoa, talk about being on the same wavelength. I was thinking the exact same thing."

And so, the reply from 'Colorful Beauty'-dono, who, in terms of fame, was in a sort of executive position within the group, was a positive one.

Her superficial persona is what it is, making her seem a little unreliable, but I know that deep down, she's undoubtedly a more thoughtful person than I am.

She's someone who should be offering her opinions far more than a figurehead leader, so it has more or less become standard practice to toss any complicated matters to Nono-san—

"Well, you know, even if the people of Arcadia are all ladies and gentlemen, once you get past a few hundred people, it's impossible to lead unless you're a top-tier raid leader. As an organization, it'd probably be best to cut it off here to avoid a lot of trouble."

"And about the lottery invitation?"

"I'm mostly in favor of that, too. I think something like 'Limited to 100 Recruits!!!' would be fine. If we wanted to play it safer, we could cap it at half that, around fifty people, but our members are a pretty competent bunch, so I think we have some leeway."

And there you have it.

See? She usually has a dazed look on her face and acts foolish, but this woman is always thinking about this and that under the surface. As expected of a former idol.

She lived in a world that was the epitome of interpersonal relations. Of course she's smart.

"If you'd like, shall I pass the word to the leaders of each squad? Something casual, like 'Hey, this idea came up, what do you think?' Nonomi-chan has plenty of free time, so it's no problem."

"Really? Would you mind?"

"Of course not! Consider it done!"

The conversation started with the little cat's mutterings, but it was something I'd been thinking about for a while. For now, I was relieved that we had a plan—and just as I thought that,

"What is it, you two?"

I picked up on the gazes I had been aware of for some time.

With Tetsu-san away replenishing the food, there were five of us, including me, around the table. Despite being in our regular avatars, the group was eighty percent glamorous, with whispers of 'five crimson flowers' floating around… and among them, the light blue and yellow.

I'll set aside the meat-loving Nia-chan, who had quickly cheered up and was now munching away happily, but the ones looking at me with an unreadable expression were the two rank-holding senpais.

"It doesn't suit you."

"It doesn't suit you, does it."

"Shut up. I know."

Sure enough, predicting they were thinking something rude, I shot them a half-lidded glare, and the response was, as expected, just plain rude.

Damn them, they harmonized perfectly.

"It can't be helped, I was the only combat-oriented ranker. People started looking to me for orders in emergencies, and I naturally ended up as the figurehead leader. I'm doing my best, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, don't sulk, it's annoying. I'm not making fun of you or dissing you, I just thought, 'This really isn't your character, is it?'"

I didn't think I was sulking, but maybe my voice had carried a hint of dissatisfaction without me realizing. With the kind of gentle tone she sometimes used to comfort me, Nacchan-senpai added her words along with an exasperated sigh.

That sigh was unnecessary.

"My character is…"

"You're more of a 'subordinate' type, aren't you?"

That's true. I'm definitely not the type of person to stand above others.

"Eh, you think so? I think Haru-san has plenty of leadership qualities."

And then, for some reason, a dissenting opinion arose. I thought she was teasing me, but when I looked next to me, Nono-san was tilting her head with a perfectly serious expression.

"Onii-san basically gives off a strong 'younger brother' vibe."

"What are you suddenly talking about?"

And another comment that threw the conversation into chaos. Having quickly grown bored of poking Nia, Ri-na, who had been daintily eating with her small mouth, joined the fray.

"Subordinate, junior, younger brother roles suit you. Your true nature is the 'type to be doted on'."

"Seriously, what are you talking about? Stop analyzing my true nature right in front of me—"

"Well, she's right. Yeah."

"Nacchan-senpai?"

"Yeah, yeah, well, I can't help but agree that he's secretly the cute type."

"Hey, seriously, stop it. For one guy to be surrounded by girls doing that 'thing' is actual hell—wha… huh? What's wrong? Why are you glaring at me, what's up, Nia-chan?"

"I don't know. You're sandwiched between girls, so you might as well become a girl, too."

"This isn't Othello, you know… Hey, why are you back to sulking so fast? What was the trigger? It's not my fault we ended up sitting like this."

What is this? From the outside, I'm sure I'm getting envious looks, but in reality, a 1-to-4 gender ratio is hell-tier uncomfortable once the conversation takes a weird turn.

So, what should I do? Maybe I should just make a break for it—just as I, a lone man in a garden of eccentrics, began to formulate my daring escape plan,

"Eh, what's up…?"

Before I could move, Ri-na suddenly stood up from her seat.

And as she gathered the gazes of all four of us, the girl turned to look back at me, who had asked out of pure reflex… and her light blue eyes blinked, ever so gently.

"Yeah."

Her voice was as listless as ever.

But, however. With a slightly different atmosphere than usual, yet with all the suddenness and casualness of someone saying, 'I'm just gonna pop out to the convenience store,' Ri-na said,

"I think it's about time. …I'm gonna go try my best for a bit, okay?"

"Huh? O-Oh…?"

She threw a single wink that would have dealt a mortal wound to any fan of the idol 'Ri-na Amaba', and with small steps, she briskly left the table.

---

About thirty seconds remaining until the peace of the banquet is shattered.

By the way, the reason Nonomi-chan sat next to the protagonist was because she instantly judged, "Oh crap, a fight's going to break out between his lover and his sister," when the white kitten, whether consciously or not, plopped down next to him first. She sacrificed herself to nip the conflict in the bud.

The cat who caused it all is completely oblivious.